When the Shepherd Has Lost His Voice March 4, 2018
John 10:1 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbs up some other way, he is a thief (to secretely and craftily embezzle and appropriate God’s money or glory for anything other than God) and a robber (one who enjoys taking/seizing what does not belong to him). (1) 2 “But he who enters by the door is a shepherd of the sheep. 3 “To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 “When he puts forth all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. (2) 5 “A stranger they simply will not follow, but will flee from him, because they do not know the voice of strangers.” (3) 6 This figure of speech Jesus spoke to them, but they did not understand what those things were which He had been saying to them. 7 So Jesus said to them again, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. (4) 8 “All who came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. 9 “I am the door (2x); if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. 10 “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. (5) 11 “I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. 12 “He who is a hired hand, and not a shepherd, who is not the owner of the sheep, sees the wolf coming, and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13 “He flees because he is a hired hand and is not concerned about the sheep. 14 “I am the good shepherd (2x), and I know My own and My own know Me, 15 even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. 16 “I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice; and they will become one flock with one shepherd. 17 “For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life (the cross didn’t happen to Jesus Christ, He came on purpose for it) so that I may take it again. 18 “No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father.” 19 A division occurred again among the Jews because of these words. 20 Many of them were saying, “He has a demon and is insane. Why do you listen to Him?” 21 Others were saying, “These are not the sayings of one demon-possessed. A demon cannot open the eyes of the blind, can he? (7)
Principles of the Passage
1)A good shepherd protects the door at all costs Any shepherd of ANY flock that preaches anything other than Christ born of a virgin, sinless, lived perfectly, tempted perfectly, suffered perfectly, died perfectly, rose perfectly, reigning perfectly, that shepherd who doesn’t preach these basic tenets faithfully will give an account before God as a thief and a robber.
2)A good shepherd goes ahead, leads from the front, takes the 1st shots of the enemy, absorbs as much of what Satan has for his people as is humanly possible. He prays while others sleep, he battles while others rest, he sacrifices all to guard the door and guard the sheep.
3)Good sheep know their shepherd’s voice and WILL NOT follow strangers It is literally astounding how many people leave churches today because of conflict with their shepherd. It is one of the most heartbreaking moments of any shepherd’s life and ministry to lose a sheep for ANY reason, even the ones that are hard to shepherd, the ones that don’t always follow his voice or listen to his instruction for their own safety.
4)ALL good shepherding comes from acknowledging our dependence on the Door
†The Door PROTECTS the sheep from everything outside it unless there is no shepherd
†The Door PROVIDES boundaries for the sheep so they can rest peacefully
†The Door PRODUCES nourishment for the sheep in the feeding troughs safely when the pastures are not in season or productive
†The Door PERSISTS No matter how many times a sheep head butts that door, it will remain for the sheep’s safety and peace
5)The Good Shepherd (Jesus) did not come so you could have a good life or an ok life, He came so you could live His life through you, a life when lived in Him will have an ADVANTAGE over those who don’t know His voice and acknowledge His Word.
6)Jesus is the Good Shepherd in Psalm 23 1 The LORD is my shepherd, (1) I shall not want. (2) 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. 3 He restores my soul; (3) He guides me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake. (4) 4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. (5) 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil; My cup overflows.(6) 6 Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life, And I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever. (7)
- He is MY shepherd The possessive here denotes loyalty, a fierce protective love
- I shall not want My relationship with Him leaves me wanting nothing He doesn’t give me
- His friendship is good for me We go to peaceful places together where HE RESTORES MY SOUL, HE RENEWS MY SOUL….devotional section here!!!!!!
- He guides me in right being in right choices for the right cause: HIS NAMES SAKE (HIS FAME)
- His rod and His staff are not seen as weapons toward me but comfort from my enemies (even when the enemy is my flesh rising up against my Shepherd), thus I fear no evil
- After being with Him, my cup is so full that it overflows onto everyone around me and then I pour out His goodness and lovingkindness on them.
- I LOVE HIS HOUSE Hebrews 10 Make it a habit to love His house
7)The Good Shepherd’s voice DEMANDS A RESPONSE Don’t ever forget that there will always be naysayers, haters of the Truth, haters of change, haters of anything that tells them to get out of their comfort zone. Never forget, He didn’t come to give you the life you think you want but His life and that life to the advantage!!!!